Praying Medic's Blog, page 114

Will You Come With Me?

This is a re-post of a message written by John Eldgredge that was originally posted here.

January 2015

Dear Friends,

I am among the millions who have fallen in love with the Chronicles of Narnia.

We shared them as a family when our boys were young, and we continue to love them as adults. In fact, Stasi and I are currently reading aloud book six, The Silver Chair to each other in the evenings. I’m struck this time around by how just how dangerous an adventure the children are tasked with. In chapter two, they meet Aslan on his own mountain, and Jill is told why he has summoned them:

And now hear your task. Far from here in the land of Narnia there lives an aged king who is sad because he has no prince of his blood to be king after him. He has no heir because his only son was stolen from him many years ago, and no one in Narnia knows where that prince went or whether he is still alive. But he is. I lay on you this command, that you seek this lost prince until either you have found him and brought him to his father’s house, or else died in the attempt, or else gone back into your own world.

Wait—that second piece: died in the attempt?! My goodness. These are grave orders for a couple of ten-year-olds. Aslan is the best, kindest, most Jesus-like figure you’ll ever meet in literature. This is the sort of story he has for them? Would you send your fifth-grader off to Somalia? And yet, I think Lewis was onto something very true about the character of God. The children are being called up.

You see a similar theme in The Hobbit. Gandalf arranges for young Bilbo Baggins to join a company of dwarves on their quest to recover the Lonely Mountain, and the treasure that lies buried in its halls. The young hobbit has never held a sword, never slept outdoors, never even been beyond the borders of the Shire. He loves books, tea time, his armchair, and he always carries a handkerchief. Furthermore, Gandalf does not know for certain whether or not the dragon Smaug—“chiefest and greatest of all calamities”—is lying there in dreadful malice. Now remember, Gandalf loves Bilbo, loves him dearly, yet he is sending him on a very dangerous adventure. He says to Bilbo that if he does return, “You will not be the same.”

Which brings me to one of the most important truths we can hold onto as we try and interpret our lives: God is growing us all up.

“…until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature…” (Ephesians 4:13).

As George McDonald assured us, “What father is not pleased with the first tottering attempt of his little one to walk?” And, God is absolutely committed to your growing up: “What father would be satisfied with anything but the manly step of the full-grown son or daughter?”

It helps us to understand why Jesus keeps changing the picture in our lives; he keeps introducing “new frontiers” to each of us. Just when you think you’ve got parenting down, your kids enter into a new stage; just when you think you’ve got a pretty good grasp on your inner world, Jesus shows you something that needs healing. Relationships are always changing; church life changes; your body, your income—my goodness, can you think of anything that doesn’t change?

And have you wondered why—why does God arrange for new frontiers to always be cropping up in our lives? Because God is growing us all up.

But here is the problem—most of us do not share God’s fervent passion for our maturity. Really, now, if you stopped ten people at random on their way out of church next Sunday and polled them, I doubt very much that you would find one in ten who said, “Oh, my first and greatest commitment this afternoon is to mature!” Our natural investments lie in other things—lunch, a nap, the game, our general comfort. Like Bilbo.

God is growing me up changes your expectations. When you show up at the gym, you are not surprised or irritated that the trainer pushes you into a drenching sweat; it’s what you came for. But you’d be furious if your housemate expected this of you when you flop home on the couch after a long day’s work. Bilbo hesitates; he’s not sure he wants this new frontier being offered him. I think we can all relate.

And that is why, as I was praying for you, and asking Jesus what he wanted to say, he said this: Will you come with me?

God almost always has some “new frontier” for us—something he is inviting us into, new ground he wants us to take, or a new realm of understanding; maybe a move in our external world, or a shift in our internal world; might be a new “spiritual” frontier. Sometimes those new frontiers are thrust upon us; sometimes we choose them willingly. Either way, God is taking us into new frontiers because he is growing us up. This will help you interpret what’s going on.

Where is Jesus inviting you here in 2015? Have you asked him? Maybe he’s already put it on your heart—what new realm would you like to grown into? We are finishing a four-part series on “New Frontiers” on our podast this month; I think you’ll find it very helpful as you (perhaps reluctantly) accept yours.

Now for a word of hope: towards the end of their adventure, Jill is brought to tears by the redemption that unfolds. And the next line in the book brought me to tears:

“Their quest had been worth all the pains it cost.”

That will help you answer Jesus when he says to you, Will you come with me?

Offered in hope and love,

John

Bogren – Seated on the Throne

Editor’s note: Some of my Facebook friends know about the fictional story I’ve been working on titled Bogren—a Demon’s Tale. The first drafts of that story were published on Facebook beginning in 2012, but they have since been deleted by Facebook management. Since moving to MeWe, I’ve begun writing more stories in the Bogren series. This is the latest installment. (For those who knew the main character as Kelly, her name has been changed to Shiloh.)

Bogren – Seated on the Throne

© 2015 Praying Medic

Shiloh surveyed the valley below from the comfort of a throne that sat perched at the crest of a snowy ridge on top of the mountain. Wisdom stood to her left, with her hand resting on Shiloh’s shoulder. Gloriel stood beside Wisdom, her gaze fixed on a bird circling below. On the far side of the valley, streams of living water collided, forming a massive waterfall that cascaded to the valley floor.  As they took in the view, the yellow-green fields and turquoise waterfalls slowly became a field of stars. Galaxies and nebula seemed to form out of nothing and a familiar planet appeared. Slowly, the blue planet drew nearer. Gloriel ended the silence. “What do you see, Shiloh?”

“The earth and the stars, why?”

Gloriel smiled. “Look closer.”

Shiloh looked again. The blue planet became shrouded in a thick mass of dark, swirling clouds.”

“Darkness,” Shiloh replied. “It’s like the whole earth is covered in darkness. What does it mean?”

“What do you think it means?”

“The earth is shrouded in darkness…like some kind of evil force is in control of it?”

“Yes. And here you are, Shiloh. High above the powers of darkness, seated on a throne in heaven.”

“I’ve been sitting here thinking about this throne, Gloriel. A throne is a place of rulership, isn’t it? It’s a seat that gives you authority…authority to do things. Like make decrees and establish order, right?”

“That’s right, Shiloh.”

“What kind of authority does this throne give me?”

“That’s a question you may want to ask Wisdom.”

Shiloh stood and turned to face Wisdom, whose eyes glowed with the same kind of fire she saw in the eyes of another. “If this throne grants me authority to rule, I need to know how to rule with wisdom. Can you help me?”

“As one who sits upon a heavenly throne, whatever you decree from the throne will come to pass in the realm over which the throne and its mountain have governing authority. With the provision of course, that the decree is made in agreement with a mandate you have from the king and that it’s in accordance with his will.”

“That means I need to have a mandate from the king, I suppose.”

“You already have one, my dear. We all do. One of my mandates is to impart wisdom to those who seek it. Gloriel has a mandate to guard and assist you. You have mandates as well.”

“I do?”

“Yes, Shiloh. There are many mandates you have been given. They were written on the scroll of your destiny before you were formed in your mother’s womb.”

“How do I find out what they are?”

“There are many ways to discover your mandates. One way is to examine your scroll. Another is to examine your throne. Look closely at your throne, Shiloh. Do you see the insignia on it?”

Shiloh felt the embroidered material on the back rest of the throne that was stitched with gold thread in the shape of a piano. “I don’t quite understand…”

“I think you do,” Wisdom replied.

“Does this throne have something to do with…music?”

“It does. Part of what is written on your scroll of destiny involves your influence in the world of music. Most of how you’ll influence that particular realm is determined by what you do here on this throne on the mountain of music. Each mountain has governmental authority over something unique. And as you can see, this one gives you influence and authority in the realms of music.”

“I’m sorry to be so thick-headed, Wisdom, but I don’t see the connection between what I do here on this mountain and what goes on down there on earth.”

Wisdom smiled and took Shiloh’s hand. “You are a delight, my dear and there’s no need to apologize. I’ll make everything clear to you. The desire of the king is that just as things are established here in heaven, they would likewise be established on earth. Whatever you choose to establish from your throne and on your mountain here, will be manifest on earth in the sphere that corresponds to the governmental authority of the mountain.

“I see. Now that makes sense. As for all that darkness, I still don’t see how little old me sitting on my throne of music can make a dent in all that evil.”

“Let’s talk about limitations. Each mountain does have a limited sphere of governance. And each individual has a limited level of authority. However, as you rule with wisdom and righteousness your level of authority increases. You should also consider the fact that you have more than one mountain over which you have authority and each mountain has its own sphere of influence.”

“I have other mountains?”

“Of course you do,” Wisdom said, as she turned to look at a mountain range in the distance. “Shiloh, do you see those mountains? Each one governs something unique.”

“Those are my mountains?” Shiloh exclaimed.

“Some of them are.”

“Holy cats, this is intense! Okay…I think I’m beginning to understand. So whatever I do on my other mountains will influence the other areas that I have authority over?”

“Exactly. Now let’s consider the problem of darkness on the earth. Do you understand that will of the king is that darkness would be abolished on the earth?”

“Yes, I understand that, but how do I get rid of darkness on the earth from here on my mountain?”

“A mountain is the place where you work things out as they ought to be. A throne is a place of authority. It empowers you to make changes to the mountain. A simple way to remove darkness is to bring light to the places where darkness is entrenched. Increasing the light and the glory upon your mountain is a good strategy to begin with. ”

“And how do I do that?” Shiloh ask timidly.

“You might begin by planting a garden…right here, on this mountain.”

Shiloh walked to a small, patch of ground that was bare and stared at it for a moment, thinking. She looked at Wisdom. “I’ll be right back,” she said as she disappeared into a ravine.

“You’re a wonderful teacher,” Gloriel said to Wisdom. “I think she’s catching on.”

“She’s an excellent student, and I know with your help she’ll do well.”

Shiloh reappeared with a handful of flowers that radiated rainbows of light. She dug holes in the ground with her bare hands and planted the flowers in the patch of ground. She stepped off a ledge in front of the throne and glided across the valley to the river of life. She returned a moment later with a crystal pitcher full of water and poured it on the flowers, which immediately began to grow larger.  The light coming from the flowers glowed with greater intensity.

“Shiloh, listen,” Gloriel said.

Shiloh bent down to hear and noticed the faint sound of music coming from the flowers.

“Oh, I just love this!” Shiloh said.

“This is how it’s done,” Wisdom replied. “Establish a place of light, life and love here, on your mountain. And whatever you establish here will have a similar effect on earth. You may not be able to eradicate all of the darkness on earth, but you can change much of it. And if the others are willing to occupy their thrones on their own mountains, together you can effect great changes in the earth.”

I plan to turn the Bogren stories into a novel. If you’d like to be notified when the book becomes available, sign up for my book updates in the right hand sidebar. 

Can We Heal Others While We’re Sick?

Not long ago I had a Skype conversation about healing with Mike Laabs. I told him I had a cold and he offered to pray for me. Then he asked a question: “Don’t you find it hard to heal others, when you aren’t healed yourself?”

Some would answer the question like this: “I’m already healed. The bible says that by His stripes I was healed. It’s in the past tense, so it’s already done.”

That’s one response, and it’s a valid one, but it’s not the one I usually go with. If I had my arm in a cast and a doctor asked why, I might tell him I broke my arm. If I then said, “but because of Jesus’ stripes, I’m already healed.” He would raise one eyebrow, look at me thoughtfully and say, “If you’re already healed, why do you still have your arm in a cast?” The world sees these apparent contradictions and can’t help but point them out.

Among believers, faith is understood; it’s the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen. But faith doesn’t make sense to people who walk by sight. They see a broken bone and call it broken. Once they see it healed, they call it healed. In their eyes, saying it’s healed before it appears to be is just wishful thinking.

The kingdom of God is built from a substance called faith. The medical community is taught to rely on data and observation. Faith isn’t understood and it can’t be until someone explains what it is and demonstrates how it operates. It’s our job to help people see life through the eyes of faith and apprehend the kingdom for themselves. I don’t know that we’ve earned the right to discuss faith in many circles, because we haven’t yet established a foundation upon which to build the discussion. But once we do, we might be able to speak more convincingly to the world about seeing things that have not yet appeared through the eyes of faith.

So the question we must answer here is, “Why should we believe God will heal others when He hasn’t healed us?”

My answer to this question involves two things: On the surface, the question seems valid, but it’s really a nicely – disguised distraction. The assumption in the question is that if there is no evidence of healing in our life, why should anyone believe we have healing to offer them? The fact is, the anointing for healing isn’t determined by outward appearance or physical health. By placing the focus on ourselves and how poorly-anointed we appear to be, we remove God from the equation. God’s anointing for healing rests upon all believers, regardless of our health or whether we ever use the anointing. If looking at ourselves is a stumbling block, the best strategy may be to take the focus off ourselves and place it on God.

This strategy would lead us not to look at what we’re capable of doing, but what God can do. Every believer should have a testimony of what God has done for and through them. I know I do. And while I don’t see everyone I pray with healed, many people are and I journal all of it. I’ve found that sharing a few testimonies helps deflate the objections people have to healing, and those objections can go both ways. Sometimes I have my own objections to deal with, but remembering what God has done makes them vanish. Objections to healing are understandable, especially given the fact that healing miracles aren’t exactly making news headlines. Many people are in the dark about healing. It’s our place to handle their objections carefully and respectfully and demonstrate faith in action.

If we are people of faith and the Holy Spirit lives in us, our ability to heal the sick doesn’t change if we fall down the stairs and break a bone or catch a cold. If we ever had the authority to heal, we’ll always have it; even when we’re battling cancer or lying on our death bed. The fact that we’re in a wheelchair doesn’t negate this truth; that Jesus gave us authority over sickness. If we command sickness to flee and do it in faith, we will see miracles.

The only thing preventing us from healing others while we await our own healing, is the lie that occupies the six inch prison between our ears. The lie that says we can’t heal people when we are sick, creates fear and destroys faith. Many of us fear that a stranger will object to our boldness toward healing, if they see us walking with a limp, using a cane, wearing thick glasses, or coughing as if we’re sick. These apparent contradictions keep many of us from stepping out in faith and releasing God’s power, because we fear what others think. As long as we entertain these ideas, our life will be one of walking in fear, and not faith.

Isn’t it true that God uses the foolish things of the world to confound the wise? Doesn’t He use the weak things of the world to put to shame the strong? Isn’t His strength made perfect in weakness? (1 Cor. 1:27-29)

God’s power is perhaps best displayed through the weak and broken vessels that carry His glory. How much more glorious is the miracle of healing when wrought through the hands of a faith – filled believer who is confined to a wheelchair?

Don’t fall for the lie that would tell you to wait for your own healing before trying to heal others. Your physical condition has no impact whatsoever on God’s ability to use you for His glory in healing. Be bold, have faith and stand strong against the lies of the enemy. God can use anyone, regardless of their physical condition, including you.

Related:

I’ve Received Prayer – Why Am I Still Sick?

Power and Authority for Healing

Healing 101

Why is Healing a Process?

Can People Lose Their Healing?

To Please My Father – Derek Prince

My guest post today comes from the pen of Derek Prince

Dear Friend,

Charismatic and evangelical Christians love to quote the words of Jesus in John 14:6: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Yet I believe that many of us have only apprehended the first half of that verse. A way only has meaning if it leads to a destination. Jesus is the way, but the Father is the destination.

The Revelation of the Father

In His high priestly prayer in John chapter 17, Jesus said to the Father, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.” The Jewish people had known the name Jehovah (or Yahweh) for fourteen centuries. The name which Jesus now manifested to them occurred six times in His prayer. It was “Father.”

What does it mean that Jesus manifested that name to His disciples? As they watched Him living out His life before them as a Son of God, they could begin to understand what it means to have a personal relationship with God as Father. This was something that had never been openly revealed to the Jewish people under the old covenant.

Jesus emphasized that He alone can reveal the Father. “All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and he to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” John likewise said: “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.” For the revelation of the Father each of us is dependent on the grace that comes to us only through Jesus. 

The writer of Hebrews makes a distinction between the message of the Old Testament prophets and that of Jesus: “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son…”

God’s message in the New Testament differed from His message in the Old Testament not only in content but also in the channel through which it came. In the Old Testament God spoke in prophets; in the New He spoke in a Son. Only Jesus as a Son could reveal God as Father.

A Personal Revelation

My understanding of God as Father was revolutionized by a personal experience early in 1996. Ruth and I had been sitting up in bed one morning, praying together as we normally do. Suddenly Ruth and I had been sitting up in bed one morning, praying together as we normally do. Suddenly I became aware of a powerful force at work in my feet and lower legs. It moved upward, until my whole body was forcefully shaken by it. (Ruth told me later that the skin of my face changed to deep red.)

At the same time I was aware of an arm stretched out toward my head, seeking to press down on me something like a black skull cap. For a few moments there was a conflict between these two forces. Then the power at work in my body prevailed and the arm with the skull cap was forcibly dispelled—and vanished.

Immediately, without any mental process of reasoning, I knew that I could call God my Father. I had used the phrase “our Father” for more than fifty years. Doctrinally, I was clear about this truth. I had even preached a series of three messages on “Knowing God as Father.” But what I received at that moment was a direct, personal revelation.

Let me share with you my interpretation of this experience. I was born in India and spent the first five years of my life there. Twenty years later, after I was saved and baptized in the Holy Spirit, I became aware of some dark shadow from India that always hung over me. I understood that it was one of India’s “gods” (estimates range from 4 million to 300 million) that had followed me through life, seeking to possess me.

There was one particular way that this “god” oppressed me. Every morning I would awake with a dark foreboding of something evil awaiting me. It was never anything precise, just some amorphous darkness. This unknown evil never actually happened, but every day the foreboding was there.

After I was baptized in the Spirit, the foreboding diminished in intensity, but it never disappeared. I did, however, discover that if I set my mind to praise and worship the Lord, the foreboding would lift from me. Yet, it always came back next morning!

The day that black skull cap was pulled away, the foreboding vanished—never to return! And from that morning, it became completely natural for me to address God as “Father” or “my Father.”

I have a personal relationship, not just a theological position! I have now been enjoying this new relationship for about two years. It has given me new understanding of four scriptural truths concerning fatherhood.

1. Fatherhood is the source of our personal identity.

Throughout the Bible a person is always identified as the son—or daughter—of a certain man. This is expressed also in many English family names, such as Williamson, Jackson, Thompson. In each case, a person’s identity is derived from a father.

The breakdown of the family in many nations today has produced what has become known as “generation X.” X represents the unknown quantity. Many young people in this sad generation have no significant relationship with a father. Consequently they have an identity crisis. They do not really know who they are. The unspoken cry of their hearts is for a father.

I believe that if the Christian Church of today can effectively communicate the reality of God as a Father, multitudes of young people will run into their Father’s arms. We can do this in the same way that Jesus “manifested” the Father’s name to His disciples: by demonstrating in our daily lives the reality of our own personal relationship with the Father.

2. Fatherhood assures us that we have a home in heaven.

Ever since I was saved, I have believed that if I continue faithful to the Lord, I will go to heaven when I die, but I have never really thought of heaven as my home. After that arm with the black skull cap was taken away, however, it has become natural to view heaven as my home. Shortly afterwards I said to Ruth, “When I die, if you want to give me a tombstone, you can just write on it two words: “Gone Home.”

I began to think about the poor beggar who lay outside the rich man’s door. When he died, he “was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom.” Surely one angel would have been sufficient to carry that emaciated form, but God sent an escort of angels! The beggar was given a royal welcome into Abraham’s bosom. I believe that it should be like that for every child of God. He has an escort of angels ready to carry each of us to our eternal home.

At one time Ruth and I came to know a precious Hawaiian sister (we will call her Mary) who served the Lord faithfully for many years. She used to say to her friends, “I’ve never seen an angel. I would love to see one!” As Mary lay dying of cancer, her church saw to it that there was always a Christian sister by her bed. One day Mary’s face became radiant with the glory of God. She stretched out her arms and said, “I see them–I see the angels!” Then she was gone! Her angelic escort had carried her home.

John Wesley once received word that a Methodist sister he knew had died. He responded, “Did she go in glory—or only in peace?” I believe every child of God should go home in glory—with an escort of angels.

3. Fatherhood provides total security.

Picture a little child held securely by his father’s arm, with his face pressed against the father’s shoulder. There may be great confusion and distress all around. The world may seem to be falling apart. But the little child is totally at peace, unconcerned by what is taking place all around him. He is secure in his father’s arms.

We, too, are securely held by our Father. Jesus has assured us that our Father is greater than all that may surround us and no one is able to snatch us out of His hand.

To His disciples Jesus also gave this assurance: “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” We may be just a little flock, surrounded by wild beasts of all kinds. But if our Father has committed Himself to give us the kingdom, there is no power in the universe that can withhold it from us.

4. Fatherhood provides motivation for service.

In Philippians 2:3 Paul warns us as servants of the Lord: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit. . . .” Over the years I have observed that one persistent, pervasive problem in the Church is personal ambition and competition with other ministers. Let me add that I observed this first and foremost in my own life. We often make the mistake of equating security with success. If I build the biggest church, or hold the largest meeting, or get the most names on my mailing list, I will be secure. But this is a delusion. In actual fact, the more we aim at personal success, the less secure we become. We are continually threatened by the possibility that someone else may build a bigger church, or hold a larger meeting, or get more names on his mailing list.

As for myself, I have found my perfect pattern in Jesus, who said, “The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.” I am no longer motivated by personal ambition. I have discovered a sweeter, purer motive: simply to please my Father. I am training myself to approach every situation or every decision with a single, simple question: How can I please my Father?

In times of frustration or seeming failure, I seek to turn my focus from trying to solve the problem to maintaining an attitude that is pleasing to my Father. As servants of Christ, there is no competition among us if we are motivated by this simple desire to please our

Father. Harmony and mutual concern take the place of striving and self-seeking.

As you have been reading this letter, you may have recognized that you, too, are longing for a closer, more intimate relationship with God as your Father. But perhaps there is a satanic barrier—like the black skull cap in my case—that has come between you and the Father. Remember that Jesus is the only One who can reveal the Father to you. Ask Him to remove any barrier there may be in your life and then to grant you a direct personal revelation of the Father. After that, just trust Him and wait for Him to grant you the revelation that you need in His own way and time.

Yours in the Master’s service,

Derek Prince

 

 

God’s Power Grid

God set up a system for healing that can be seen as something like a power grid. He is the source of power for healing. We are something like transmission lines carrying His power into the world. We receive power from Him and we release it into people to bring healing.

When I look at the ministry of Jesus I see no one that He was unwilling to heal. God’s power was available to heal anyone and everyone who wanted it. Since Jesus revealed the will of the Father, and He never failed to heal those who wanted healing, we must conclude that God is willing to heal everyone, without exception. When we believe that God doesn’t want to heal someone that we do, we make ourselves out to me more merciful than Him. But He is far more merciful and loving than we are.

God has given us all the authority and He’s provided access to all the power we’ll ever need to conquer sickness. If there are failures in releasing healing, they’re not on His end. They’re on our end. He always puts enough power into the grid to accomplish what needs to be done.

If a need for healing is not met, it’s not because God is holding back power. It’s because there is resistance to the flow of His power, either in us or in the receiver. Any lack of power is always a result of something on our end causing resistance.

Resistance to the flow of His power can come in many forms. Demons can create resistance, so they must be taken out of the way. Doubt, fear, unforgiveness, unbelief and other sinful attitudes can cause resistance. They must be removed or the power of God can do nothing. Our agreement with lies can also cause resistance; lies about God, about others, and about ourselves. We must renew our minds to the truth in any area where we’ve believe lies.

Instead of pointing the finger of blame at God when healing doesn’t happen, we should first inspect of our own transmission lines and see if we’re the one creating resistance to the flow of God’s power.

For more information about healing, check out my book Divine Healing Made Simple.

Related:

Power and Authority for Healing

Mike Parsons Supernatural Mentoring – Releasing Heaven’s Flow

I thought I’d begin the new year with something a little challenging. I’ve been listening to Mike Parsons lately , who has been mentoring groups on Google Hangouts for several years. Mike has literally hundreds of videos like this one available for viewing. I find that his discussions answer a lot of questions I have and they challenge me in many ways. Here’s a message you might find interesting. If viewer feedback is positive, I’ll post more of his videos in the future.

He Squeezed My Hand – Rob Coscia

My guest blogger today is Rob Coscia. Originally posted here.

Someone squeezed my hand. I hadn’t meant to fall asleep in the chair, but the glow from the Christmas tree and the soft instrumental carols were like a sugar plumb Ambien. I picked my head up to see who had disturbed my long winter’s nap, but I was alone.

Then I saw it (or felt it?). At the base of the tree was a small wooden chest, the size of a cigar box. I picked it up. It wasn’t heavy, but it was solid. The wood was stained dark red, and was inlaid all over with painted tiles. At first I thought it was for jewelry or other valuables, but there was no lock, and the tiles were like nothing I’d ever seen. They were intensely beautiful- land, sea, and skyscapes, interspersed with animals that…moved.

I blinked hard, thinking my eyes were not quite awake yet, but it didn’t help. Every scene was a window on a different part of creation, from the desert to the ocean to the mountains. The more you stared at one, the more you were drawn into it, until you were there, a part of the living art. I closed my eyes again, and this time it stopped. Or at least slowed. If I stared at a picture, it came to life again.

I reasoned that I was dreaming. I was probably still sleeping in the chair. But this felt so real. My heart was beating so hard I could hear it. I took a deep breath. Nothing could really hurt me in my own dream. Could it? Half-terrified and half-exhilarated, I opened it.

Nothing. I don’t mean it was empty. I was gazing into infinite space, like staring at a dark part of the sky on a moonless night. As with the outside, it drew you in. But this was harder to pull back from. There was an odd sensation of slowly falling, yet being perfectly at peace. Surrounded in that contentment, I let myself drift in silence. Then a voice.

I say voice, but it wasn’t language as I knew it. It was more- images and emotion and thought, both to me and from me. Every cell in me reverberated with it, like standing under a massive waterfall. There was nothing in my mind I could hide, and nothing I could keep from coming in. I’m not sure how long that went on before I began to be aware of certain thought-feeling-memories rising above the rest.

These were difficult. Painful. These were the moments of my life that didn’t make sense. Broken relationships. Overwhelming circumstances. Rejections. Failures. Deaths. I saw the lymphoma. The mass in my chest was vivid, an alien winding its tentacles around my heart, trying to strangle the life out of me. Above all this, one word appeared.

Why.

I couldn’t conceal my deep desire to know why these things happened. No, not desire. Offense. Bitterness. I didn’t realize how angry I was at the suffering I had seen so many go through, and wanted to know why. Why are there evil men who destroy lives and get paid for it, while a brilliant 12-year old dies of cancer. For that matter, why did I get it? What did I do wrong?

The images around me shifted again. I saw larger versions of the outside of the box, sweeping panoramas of nations and cities and people. It was more this time though. I could feel God’s connection to everything. More than that. His presence energized every good thing. There was no shadow in Him, no intent to punish anyone, no thought of sacrificing one in favor of another. I could feel His love for each person. His desire to give every single person what they needed to become all that He saw they could be. The awareness of His love grew until I couldn’t take it anymore, and I collapsed in the chair. I begged Him to make it stop.

He spoke this time in a way I could receive more easily. “My son, I have made galaxies and atoms. I designed both lions and lionfish. I created you. I know you have questions. I know some things don’t seem to make sense. But there are things that you simply can’t understand right now. So I’m asking you to trust Me. I’m asking you to look recognize My love for everyone and in everything, and trust Me in that love. The box I have given you is for all your questions. It’s not locked- it isn’t to stuff your feelings down and pretend they don’t exist. It isn’t to live in religious rigidness. It’s for you to put things in that you can’t understand right now. Someday we will sit down and talk about them all. But for now, will you trust that I love you unconditionally and want you to thrive?”

All my bitterness, pain, and fear got swallowed up as He spoke. I nodded slightly, too weak to say anything. I could feel Him standing next to me, strengthening me, healing me, loving me.

He squeezed my hand.

Why I’m Leaving Facebook

I need to discuss something that is very personal and difficult for me to talk about. This is without question the most difficult message I’ve ever written.

I joined Facebook about 5 years ago. At the start, I had no idea what I was doing, but it didn’t take long before I was connected to a few thousand like-minded people and soon we had a community of believers who shared their experiences, taught one another, and laughed and prayed for each other’s needs. Over the years I’ve become terribly fond of my Facebook friends, even though I’ve never met most of them in person.

God has used Facebook as a tool to help me encourage and teach thousands of people, and in return I’ve been encouraged and instructed in the things of the kingdom. In addition to working a full-time job, I spend about 30 to 40 hours a week on Facebook, looking for material to post, commenting on friend’s posts, answering questions, and responding to people’s prayer requests. When people ask me where I go to church, I want to tell them Facebook is my church. Northwest Prophetic once told a friend, “He’s a pretty busy guy. He pastors an online church of 5,000 people.” Were it not for Facebook, I can only imagine where my walk with God would be today.

Over the last few years God has given me many dreams about Facebook. In some of the dreams I would tell people to start a Facebook page for their business and in others I would be promoting the pages of my friends. In one dream I was given a bag of “likes”. I had to give them all out, because the next day I was going to get another bag. In December of 2013, I had dreams about Facebook five nights in a row. All of them were positive. Then on December 9th I had the following dream:

In the dream I was communicating with people who had fears of being located and apprehended by authorities because of what Facebook was revealing about them. There was a sense in the dream that I should take this threat seriously and I was aware that I might be one of the people who would be apprehended.

I didn’t quite know what to do about Facebook in light of this dream, so I waited for God to give me more information. I sat on the dream and didn’t tell anyone about it. On November 1st of this year, while taking an afternoon nap, I had a dream where there was big news about someone we all know leaving Facebook. (I believe that person was me, but it wasn’t clearly revealed in the dream.) That night I had another dream where someone made me aware that a program on my computer had the potential to cause me big problems. The problem was related to one of the social networks I was using. The following night I had a dream where I was testing out a new social media program.

In years past, it seemed like Facebook was a safe place to conduct my online activities. I’m not one for conspiracy theories and I don’t live in fear that the government is out to arrest me or take away my rights. But in light of these dreams and recent changes to its policies, it seems like Facebook may no longer be a safe place for me and some of my friends. And it appears that God is asking me to move my social media activities to a safer place.

I believe the facts are most reliable when they’re established by the mouth of two or three witnesses. While Satan may be able to give us deceptive revelation, he doesn’t confirm it the way God does. The week that I composed this message I was contacted by two friends who had dreams involving me. In the first dream, my wife and I accompanied a friend and together we led a group of people out of a mine that lie deep in the heart of a mountain. We carried torches to light the way as we walked through the mines on an uphill path.  As I sought God’s wisdom about this dream it occurred to me that it might be referring (metaphorically) to the mountain of social media. Facebook, Google and the like are known for “mining” and “scraping” data which is a valuable commodity that’s sold for a profit. The dream seems to indicate that it’s my duty to lead people out of that mountain.

A few days later I met with another friend who had a dream in which I played a key role. My appearance was represented by my Bitstrip cartoon character from Facebook. This friend’s dream was long and detailed, but the summary was that I led a group of people on a mission to uncover a prostitution ring that was operating in a network of underground tunnels out of sight of the people who lived in this town. In one scene I did something that startled the people I was with. I grabbed a child who was standing on the street and pulled a knife out of my pocket. I cut away the child’s face to the horror of those I was with. But when the child’s face was removed, it turned out to be a robot. There were other robots on the street posing as children and I did the same to them. My appearance in the dream as my Facebook character would seem to indicate that the dream is speaking about something happening on Facebook. Robots are computer programs that run automated tasks, often times appearing to be humans that are interacting on the Internet.

My Battle With Facebook

In September of 2014 Facebook began cracking down on users who went by fictitious names. Although their policy doesn’t require people to use their legal name, they started demanding people use a name that at least sounds like it might be a real name, and Praying Medic didn’t qualify. They could tell by how many friends and followers I had that I had a legitimate purpose for being on Facebook, so rather than shutting down my account they demanded I convert my personal profile into a business page. (Some of my friends who go by aliases were allowed to keep their personal profiles if they agreed to change their names, but I was not given that option.)

I attempted to contact Facebook’s customer support, but found that it’s virtually impossible to contact a live person at Facebook. The only communication they have with users is through automated responses. The reason why Facebook doesn’t provide support to its users is because users aren’t customers. Users are the product that Facebook sells to its customers. Facebook’s customers are the likes of Nike, Ford, Apple, Burger King and Amazon. These companies purchase ads that are targeted at users based on the data Facebook collects on them. If Amazon has a problem, they can make a phone call to Facebook and get help, but that’s not an option for users. Users are the product, not the customer.

So after some futile attempts to contact a live person at Facebook I gave up and did what they asked. I converted my personal profile to a page. My 5,000 friends and 6,000 followers were converted to people who “liked” my new page. And since then, I haven’t been able to access my newly created page. (You can search Facebook and find that page, but I’m locked out of it and all the other pages I had that were associated with my old profile.)

As an admitted Facebook addict, (my wife calls me a Facebook maven) I needed to get re-connected to my tribe. So I started over with a new profile under a different name. I’ve been able to find some of my friends, but to most of them I’m still missing in action. And now in light of these dreams I’m having to ask myself what purpose Facebook serves to my community of friends.

It would be understandable for people to think that my thoughts of leaving Facebook are due to frustration or resentment over what they’ve done, or simple paranoia, but nothing could be further from the truth. Were it not for the dreams God gave me, I’d be perfectly content to stay on Facebook. I don’t actually want to leave Facebook, and I’m not trying to get everyone else to leave. I’ve been advising friends who feel led to stay on Facebook to continue using it. My move is just an attempt to obey what I think God is asking me to do. I realize that God has used my presence on Facebook to encourage and train a lot of people. As a guy who is trying to quit his day job to become a full-time writer, I realize that leaving Facebook may be committing social media suicide. From the natural perspective, leaving Facebook is a stupid move. But If God asked me to write more books and He’s asked me to leave Facebook, He must have a way to make this all work out. So I’m going to have to trust in His plan. I believe it’s time for me to leave Facebook permanently.

People tend to fall into three categories on this issue: Some are going to be content to stay on Facebook, no matter what. Some people will explore other options, but keep their Facebook account active to stay connected with their friends and family. A third group is leaving Facebook altogether, and it’s not a small group. I want to be clear about one thing – I’m not actually trying to get anyone to leave Facebook. I’m simply explaining why some of us have made the decision to leave and why some are exploring other options. I respect those who are staying on Facebook and I don’t hold any negative feelings toward them. If someone is being prompted by God to leave Facebook, they will likely know it. If you’re not feeling so led, then by all means stay.

For those who are feeling led to look elsewhere:

The same day that I had the dream about someone leaving Facebook, I found a social media platform called MeWe, which bills itself as the world’s “privacy network.”  I signed up for an account and almost immediately got connected to one of the company’s vice-presidents, Clint Fiore. I had a lot of questions for Clint about MeWe; questions about its goals, its philosophy toward users, its business model, and a lot of other issues, which he was happy to answer over the next few days. He asked me to check out the platform and give him feedback. I found a few glitches and things that needed improvement and passed my suggestions along to him. Within a week or two everything I suggested had been incorporated into the latest update. To be honest, I was dumbfounded. It looked like I had found a social network that actually wanted my input and was prepared to take action on my suggestions. Some of you are probably wondering how secure MeWe is, and how easy it is it to use.

Ease of Use

Although there are many differences between Facebook and MeWe, I found navigating MeWe’s platform pretty intuitive and similar to Facebook’s interface. If you’d like to take MeWe for a test drive, I’ve created a video tutorial that shows the basics of navigating the desktop platform and I give a few some insights on how the mobile apps function. (The video can be found at the bottom of this message.) During the first few days of using MeWe and posting about it on Facebook, I was surprised to find that of the 700 friends I had re-connected with, about 300 signed up for accounts on MeWe. A social network is only as valuable as the people using it and so far, my friends have been happy to give MeWe a try.

Security

MeWe’s is the brainchild of  Tim Berners-Lee and Mark Weinstein; two respected Internet pioneers. Weinstein is an outspoken privacy advocate, who has made a career out of establishing social networks where the online activities of users aren’t tracked.  Berners-Lee is the founder of the World Wide Web. He serves as an adviser  to the developers of Mewe. He said this about his  involvement with  MeWe:

“The original idea of the Web was that it should be a collaborative space where you can communicate through sharing information. The power to abuse the open Internet has become so tempting both for government and big companies. MeWe gives the power of the Internet back to the people with a platform built for collaboration and privacy.”

While Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg proudly proclaimed the death of internet privacy, even going so far as to say that people don’t care about their privacy anymore, Weinstein and Berners-Lee believe that if a network is created that offers privacy to its users, people will leave Google and Facebook in droves.

MeWe is designed from the ground up to provide privacy, security, and anonymity if users require it. As far as anonymity goes – MeWe doesn’t particularly care what name you use. One of the big pushes lately with Facebook is its insistence on getting names, addresses, phone numbers and the physical location of users. This information is like gold to advertisers and that’s why Facebook wants it. Unlike other networks that want to know as much about you as possible, MeWe stores your data on its servers, but doesn’t categorize it or build profiles on its customers. Facebook states in its user agreement that you acknowledge that the content you post belongs to them, and they’re free to do with it as they please. MeWe acknowledges that the content you post belongs to you.

Questions and Objections

My friends and I have been discussing my decision to leave Facebook for a couple of weeks. Below I’ll address the most common questions and objections people have about my decision:

So if MeWe doesn’t sell its users data to advertisers, how does it plan to make money?

With optional services.  MeWe allows users to earn up to 8 GB of data storage for free. You can add  extra storage for a fee (up to 500GB).  They plan to roll out apps for business users  in the near future and eventually, they plan to launch a subscription-based enterprise version. For those users who aren’t ready to break ties with traditional social media, MeWe has an option to post to their Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter accounts and monitor newsfeeds from inside the MeWe desktop.

Some have asked what is to prevent MeWe from turning into another Silicon Valley start-up that sells out to Facebook or Google?

The founders of Mewe have a different philosophy from those who have founded other social networks. Nearly every other social network has operated on the same basic business model: You offer a service to users in exchange for their data, which is the commodity that companies like Google and Facebook want. The plan is to grow the network large enough to gain the attention of Google or Facebook, which buys the company leaving investors with a tidy profit. (Facebook recently paid 21 Billion dollars to acquire WhatsApp and its mountain of data.) Mewe operates in a way that would provide no useful data to companies like Google or Facebook, so there is virtually no chance of them selling out to one of these companies.

Some point out that all our information is available on the Internet anyway and trying to secure our personal information is a waste of time.

My response to this objection is that Internet security is not a cut-and dry issue. Some networks handle data in a way that makes them more trustworthy than others. While one network may store your data and never analyze it, another network might categorize it and sell it to advertisers, while a third may hand it over to a government that will put you in prison for it. Not all networks have the same degree of loyalty to their users. Companies like Google, Apple, Yahoo, Amazon and Facebook are all in the data collection business. The NSA and other government agencies have asked for data from them in the past and it’s likely they will ask for it in the future. Some companies gladly hand over what they have, but other companies will go to court to keep it private.  The question isn’t whether your data is available somewhere on the Internet but rather, who has your data and what are they doing to protect it?

Some have noted that the life if the believer is one where we’ve already already died, and that any danger Facebook poses is no real threat, so why should I be concerned? (The observation here is that a believer should never try to avoid harassment or persecution.)

Sometimes God’s plan is to have us go through persecution or harassment (the apostle Paul is an example). But other times His plan is to rescue us from them. Joseph was told to flee to Egypt when Herod went on his killing spree and Peter was released from prison by an angel. God doesn’t always want us to face harassment and persecution. I think this is a case where He would rater we be spared from it, at least for a while. The issue is further complicated by the fact that I’m deeply connected to a few thousand  people who are likely to follow my lead. Wherever I go, they will probably go, and while I might be willing to risk my own safety to stay in a place where I might be exposed to danger, I can’t knowingly expose my friends to it.

Some people won’t consider leaving Facebook because they’re already connected to friends and family there and they believe they like couldn’t learn to use another network.

The movie The Matrix illustrates the situation most of us are in. “The Matrix” is a computer-generated world were humans interact with each other, as if they were living in a real world. The experiences they have are not real but computer simulations designed to keep their minds occupied. What they don’t know is that their purpose for being connected to the matrix is to provide energy to the vast system of computers that run the world. Humans have been reduced to batteries which give the Matrix the juice it needs to keep them enslaved. A few people learn the truth about the Matrix and manage to unplug from it. They live a meager existence as outcasts, continually on the run from agents who are trying to kill them. One character grows weary of life outside the matrix, and yearns to return to the simulated world of pleasure. So he strikes a deal with one of the agents to return to the matrix in exchange for information on where the others are located. Although he knew he would be returning to a life of slavery by plugging back into the Matrix, His need for comfort was far greater than his desire for freedom.

Facebook provides plenty of things that keep us entertained, educated, encouraged and most importantly for Facebook, comfortable. Some of us love the games. Some of us need the “likes” and “shares”  that affirm our value to others. Some of us need the fellowship, the teaching or the connection with family. The goal of Facebook is to create a comfortable environment that keeps us coming back for more. The more we come back, the more data they collect on us and the more they have to sell to advertisers, which is the end-game for them. Facebook will go to great lengths to keep you from unplugging from its network. If you don’t believe me, try de-activating your account some time and check out the emotional appeal they make to get you to re-consider your decision.

Data Shelf-Life

The other thing to consider is that personal data on the Internet has a relatively short shelf-life. Addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail address change often enough that old data is not considered valuable to those who want it. Once you leave a network, your data begins to lose its relevance and value. The longer you’re off the network, the more important it is for them to update your data when you return. Once you unplug from the data mining community, the data they have on you quickly becomes useless. Allow me to illustrate:

When I tried to upload the Mewe tutorial video to Youtube this week, (Youtube is owned by Google) they required me to enter my phone number so they could send a code to my phone for me to enter to verify that I was the account user. Their story is that it’s worth my time to give them my phone number so that they can verify that no one else is using my account but me. It was a logical appeal, but if I comply with their request, I’ve just updated another piece of data they really want to have. My account could have been verified by e-mail, but apparently having my current phone number was more important to them. (I was not in the mood to give them my phone number, so I uploaded the video to Vimeo instead.)  

Is it possible to find a trustworthy network?

I don’t know for certain. But MeWe has two very committed privacy advocates running it. If there is any way possible to keep people’s information secure, and out of the hands of authorities who may want to use it against us, I think they’ll find a way do it. There are no guarantees they’ll succeed, but I need to support the efforts of people who are at least trying to do the right thing, even if they don’t succeed to the degree that I would like.

There are a few issues you must deal with when you consider joining a new social network. One is learning the new platform. Another is the loneliness at the beginning when it seems like none of your friends are interested in joining you. Most of the resistance I’ve received from friends so far has to do with the fact that they’re already connected to friends and family on Facebook and they can’t see leaving them for a different network. Because Facebook has become so entrenched in our society, it makes me wonder how bad things would have to get before people would entertain the thought of leaving. If Facebook truly does become a risk to your personal safety, at some point you’re going to have to evaluate how important your loyalty is to your family and how much you value your safety and freedom.

If you decide to venture out into the unknown you’re going to find a few new friends there, waiting for you. If you give your current friends and family a few good reasons to consider switching, you might be surprised at how many of them are willing to come with you.

And so my friends, it looks like my days on Facebook are numbered. I plan to stay on a little longer so I can re-connect with friends who still haven’t found me, but I’ll be moving my activities over to MeWe in the near future. I hope to see you there.

If you want to connect with me on MeWe, just click on the image below and send me a contact request.

If you want to connect with me on Facebook before I leave click on the image below.

I pray that your new year is full of pleasant surprises.

~PM

Video Tutorial for Mewe 

The Bell Ringer

It was a sunny but cold afternoon and I was at the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner. A woman volunteer in a wheelchair sat at the entrance to the store ringing her Salvation Army bell as a blur of humanity passed before her eyes. A handful of coins plinked in her bucket. The bell rang again.

At the end of my workday I breezed through Safeway and quickly found a roasted chicken and a bag of coffee. The woman who ground my coffee asked, “Are you ready for Christmas?”

I gave her a smile. “I wish I was ready. Unfortunately, I still have a little more shopping to do.”

I grabbed my coffee and headed to the checkout. I made small talk with the woman at the counter as she scanned my items. People came and went in a hurry, but the lady ringing the bell was still on my mind.

Peter and John went to the temple one afternoon to take part in the three o’clock prayer service. As they approached the temple, a man lame from birth was being carried in. Each day he was put beside the temple gate, the one called the Beautiful Gate, so he could beg from the people going into the temple. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for some money.

Peter and John looked at him intently, and Peter said, “Look at us!” The lame man looked at them eagerly, expecting some money. But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”

Then Peter took the lame man by the right hand and helped him up. And as he did, the man’s feet and ankles were instantly healed and strengthened. He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the temple with them.

All the people saw him walking and heard him praising God.

(Acts 3:1-9)

Two thousand years later, I was stood before a crippled woman sitting at a gate asking for money. The irony of the situation hit me like a snowball in the face. I took her hand and asked her name, then asked why she was in the wheelchair. She smiled and told me about the problems she had with her hip. She had an injury that couldn’t be repaired surgically and it was too painful for her to stand so she accepted the wheelchair as her fate.

More people came and went from the store. Children dropped their coins in her bucket. She rang the bell and smiled. “Earlier today I prayed with a woman who had a back injury. She was completely healed. Would you like me to pray for you?”

“That would be wonderful,” she said with a cheerful smile.

I placed my hand on her hip. “I command spirits of pain to leave. I command ligaments, muscles and tendons to be healed in Jesus’ name.” I asked what she felt.

“I can feel something going on in my hip. It feels like tingling.”

I prayed a second time. “Pain I command you to leave. Ligaments, tendons, bones, muscles and cartilage, be healed in Jesus’ name.” I asked again how she felt.

“I can still feel the tingling, but my pain is much less than it was before.”

I prayed one more time and asked how she felt. “I can’t feel any pain,” she said with a smile.

“Maybe you could get up and see how it feels when you’re standing. I’d like to see you test it out a little bit.” She got up from the wheelchair and shifted her weight from side to side, trying to make the pain come back, but it wouldn’t return. She was healed. With a smile of gratitude she hugged me.

I spent some time telling her what to expect in the coming days. I encouraged her to resist relying on the wheelchair again and also warned her that the pain might return. “Rebuke the pain and command it to leave. Don’t take it back.” I shared with her about the nature of spiritual warfare and suggested that the enemy may try to convince her she wasn’t healed. “Stand on your healing and believe you are healed.”

Before I left I gave her a big hug and dropped the largest bill I had in her kettle. “Merry Christmas!” She smiled back and rang her bell one more time.

This is an excerpt from the book My Craziest Adventures With God.

Ginny’s Table – a Dream Come True

My guest blogger today in Ginny Wilcox. This message was originally posted here.

Editor’s note: Ginny and her husband Paul have been friends of mine for a few years. Last year Ginny had a dream that she shared with me. We talked about it and she came to the realization that God was asking her to take a step of faith regarding her dream of having a place where she bakes food for people and at the same time, is able to encourage them. This is the story of her dream becoming a reality.

I just took the last package to the Post Office yesterday. Wow, that was quite the ride! This entire Etsy adventure has been quite the ride.

I started Gigi’s Table without that much expectation of success. I kept thinking, who would want to buy my stuff, and who would want to buy baked goods online and receive it in the mail?

But, as it turns out, there are many people who are adventurous and who also love giving gifts. And honestly, who doesn’t just love getting packages in the mail? I know I do!

When I opened my shop in May I started off pretty strong because of my Facebook friends. They supported me with encouragement, by sharing my post on their walls, sharing pictures of my baked goods and by even purchasing items and then giving great reviews. It was off to a great start! But after several weeks, traffic dwindled from friends and I had to figure out what I was going to do.

I began to pray for the success of Gigi’s Table. I really felt that it was a “God” thing and this was something I was born to do. So, I prayed that I would be a blessing to those who came to my shop and that I would be an encourager, no matter if someone purchased anything or not. I had to stop looking at the numbers and stats and trust Him. Not very long after praying, orders began to come in from people who had simply visited my shop. They were drawn in by the photos and descriptions of my items and they actually wanted to purchase them. Wow. I found this amazing because I had struggled over what to write and how to sell with words all the things I sell. I thought how cool is that??

When the holiday season approached I tried to plan ahead for what could be a very busy season but I had nothing to base how busy it may or may not be, having never had a “holiday” season before. So with faith alone (which is not a little thing) I bought the extra supplies I thought I may need.

Thanksgiving proved to be somewhat busy and I was very thankful for that, but once December arrived, everything changed. Besides baking and shipping orders I began to spend lots of time in conversation online answering questions, making suggestions and just basic correspondence with people wanting to place orders soon. I couldn’t believe how much time it took for all this took. Most days I averaged 10 to 12 hours actively with my Etsy shop. I guess that’s pretty normal when you are the only one working in your business.

This week has been the busiest of all. Of course everyone wants their items for Christmas so that means these last few days have been crazy for lack of a better word. My busiest day was Wednesday where I baked and shipped 10 different orders. (And here I previously thought 3 orders in one day was a lot!)

For the last two weeks I had been keeping an eye on all my supplies; they were getting questionable as to whether they would last or if I would have to reorder here in the midst of the holiday crush.

Yesterday, (Thursday), I took my last package to the post office. I cannot tell you what a relief it was. Let me tell you about that relief. With that last package, I used my last shipping label, my last packing material, my last shipping tape, my last frozen gel pack and pretty much the last of my ink cartridge! Even to the last minute detail, God is faithful. Every time I looked at my supplies He said TRUST Him. I did. He was right! How cool is HE?? I had exactly enough to get all the packages in the mail and He knew it.

I have two more orders for Monday and Tuesday but they are local and don’t need to ship which means I now have time to restock my supplies. He knew that too.

I love doing what I’m passionate about because I know this is also His plan. It’s not His entire plan for me but this is the beginning, and if I am faithful with this small thing and trust Him to continue to bring the increase, I will continue to be blessed. And I will continue to bless others through my hands and through my words.

Also, another thing God has blessed me with: I am blessed to say, my customer’s are the greatest on the planet! They are so gracious and kind it’s amazing. How wonderful it is to have a conversation with a complete stranger where I get to bless them with kindness and honor and to have that returned back to me; amazing. I am blessed among women.

It’s been shown to me that success is not measured by how many friends you have but by how much you trust you are hearing God and doing the things He’s put in your heart. He alone brings the “lasting” increase.

(Click image below to visit Gigi’s Table)